The World Health Organisation (WHO) says alcohol consumption causes three million deaths every year, while six deaths are recorded every six minutes.
It said alcohol had been widely used in many cultures for centuries, and it was associated with significant health risks and harms, linked to multiple diseases, injuries, and premature deaths.
It noted that it caused 100 per cent of alcohol use disorders, 18 percent of suicides, 18 per cent of interpersonal violence, 27 per cent of traffic injuries, and 13 percent of epilepsy.
The rest were 48 per cent of liver cirrhosis, 26 per cent of mouth cancers, 26 per cent of pancreatitis, 20 per cent of tuberculosis, 11 per cent of colorectal cancer, five per cent of breast cancer and seven per cent of hypertensive heart disease.
This came to light at the 2nd High-Level Stakeholders meeting on the implementation of Ghana’s National Alcohol Policy (NAP) 2016, organised by the Alcohol Policy Alliance – Ghana (GhanAPA) in Accra.
The meeting was on the theme, “Harnessing the Reset Agenda to stimulate healthy lifestyle, reduce health risks and promote wellness through the passage of the draft National Alcohol Control Regulations in Ghana.”
It was attended by representatives from the Food and Drugs Authority, Ghana Health Service, National Health Insurance Authority, Mental Health Authority, National Road Safety Authority, Ghana Revenue Authority, West African Alcohol Alliance, among other institutions.
The GhanAPA expressed concern about alcohol related harm in Ghana, stating that the Mental Health Authority in its 2023 annual report recorded 3,765 cases of alcohol-related mental health disorders and 5,554 cases attributed to other psychoactive substances.
It said the STEPS Report 2023 showed that 22.6 percent of adults aged 18-69 years were current drinkers, with men constituting 30.6 per cent while 14.5 percent were women.
It said the National Road Safety Authority study in 2014 confirmed alcohol as one of the major factors contributing to road crashes.
Source: adomonline.com
